November 18, 2024
By Samuel Ogunsona
The Labour Party (LP) candidate in the Ondo governorship election, Ayodele Olorunfemi, has blamed Peter Obi and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) for his poor performance in the polls.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Lucky Aiyedatiwa of the All Progressives Congress (APC) the winner with 366,781 votes, defeating Agboola Ajayi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who garnered 117,845 votes. Olorunfemi finished far behind, securing just 1,162 votes.
The controversy surrounding Olorunfemi’s candidacy began when the federal high court in Abuja directed INEC to recognize Olusola Ebiseni as the LP candidate on September 27.
However, the appellate court later struck out the judgment, reinstating Olorunfemi as the rightful candidate. Olorunfemi claimed Obi and NLC sabotaged his campaign, stating they “scuttled my aspirations and chances to win this Ondo election”.
Obi had previously endorsed Ebiseni, describing him as “someone who believes in a Nigeria rooted in fairness, equity, and justice”.
However, Olorunfemi views Ebiseni as a “PDP reject” forced on the party by Obi and NLC.
He said, “My campaign for the election was neither here nor there. I have Peter Obi and the NLC to thank for that.
“They have scuttled my aspirations and chances to win this Ondo election, These people spoilt things for us with that PDP reject they wanted to force on the party. Their insistence on having Ebiseni on the ballot ruined everything for me.
“They just capitalised on the crisis between the Labour Party and the Nigeria Labour Congress to create problems”
The LP candidate has threatened to petition the police authorities to investigate how his name and signature were forged by Ebiseni and the NLC.
